The Joye of Being At Hogwarts
by FangZone
Summary: The story of my time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It's set in the Marauder era! There is going to be some hardcore JPLE and SBRL going on in this story! Be warned!
1. Welcome Home

_My Perspective_

I walked down the hall looking for an empty compartment on this amazing train. At long last, I found one and situated myself within it. I closed my eyes and remembered how this all came to be…

I was sitting in my home in Glasgow playing with my cat, when my sister came in the room. She was very angry with me over something I hadn't even done! She walked up and shooed the cat away and picked me up. She's six years older than I am, so picking me up was no difficult task for her. She started yelling at me about something so ridiculous that I can't even remember now! It wasn't the most ideal start to this particularly AMAZING day.

She was standing there, holding onto my arms and yelling in my face. I was hardly phased, as my sister often time did that. It seemed as though her incessant screeching would never come to an end. Much to my gratitude, there was a loud THUD at the window which made us both jump violently and make this odd whimper sounds. Neither of us were too keen on the idea of going over to the window to see what it was. I, being only of age 10, walked over to the window and, very timidly, opened it.

We were both rather confused that what was beyond the glass pane, was an owl. We lived relatively close to the countryside, but we've only rarely ever seen owls come to the city. It's golden eyes looked up at me, and my light blue ones stared back. The bird held an envelope in its beak, and, to my amazement, the envelope was addressed to me. My mouth fell open a bit as I looked at it in awe. At that point, my sister had decided to stroll over and grab it out of my hands.

"Who'd bother writing to you? You're a freak!" she shouted.

"Give it back!" I demanded.

She refused to do so. I channeled as much anger as I could and tackled her, tearing my letter out of her hands in the process. With my knee on her stomach, I asked if she would surrender. All I got was a nod in return. I got up and walked to my room with my bewildering letter. I locked my door and sat on my bed, just staring at the envelope. It was sealed with wax, imprinted with an "H" seal. I've always loved the look of wax seals.

After conjuring my courage to open it, I read the letter as fast as I could. Apparently, I was a witch? My parents always told me that magic wasn't real. Maybe someone was just playing a trick on me. That's probably it. One of the kids from school found out that I love magic and the idea of being able to cast spells and such things. This was all just a joke. So, I grabbed the letter, crumpled it up, and left my room, throwing the letter into the fire.

It was shortly after that, that I got 3 more letters. They all looked the same as the first, all contained the same letter. I decided to tell my father about it, and he didn't seem surprised at all.

"Amanda, dear, this isn't a joke that one of your classmates is playing on you. When you were born, we received a letter from this school. They told us that you would grow up to be magical, and that you'd be receiving a letter to attend Hogwarts at age 11."

"How'd they even know it was my birthday?"

"I don't know, hon. Magic, probably. I'm sure you'll learn all about it. It's lucky your birthday is in the middle of July. Plenty of time for you to become accustomed to all this magic stuff. Don't want you to be freaked out, now do we?"

"… That's just ridiculous. I'm 11, I'm not stupid."

"Yes, I know. You're a very bright young girl, and you'll go to Hogwarts and learn all about how to spells, and brew potions, and even fly on a broom."

"I'm afraid of heights! How is that going to fun?"

"Trust me, sweetie. You'll have a great time. According to this letter, we'll need to go to Diagon Alley in London to get supplies for your school year. We'll go in a couple weeks, alright? School doesn't start until September 1st."

"If what you're saying ISN'T the result of head trauma, why can't we go tomorrow?"

"You'll learn too much before you get there. Give the teachers a chance to let you learn something."

"Fine, I guess."

I turned to walk away, but I was halted by my sister standing in the doorway.

"Witch."

"Jealous?"

"Not at all. I always knew you were a freak. It will be wonderful with you finally out of the house."

"Thanks. It will be great to not have to listen to you boast about yourself for an entire school year. And, please, don't write."

"You're not gone yet, Amanda."

"Who cares? I can't wait to get away from you for a while."

All I can remember from in between these two points in time is a lot of giddy behavior from me and my parents. Even my sister seemed to be highly intrigued by Diagon Alley when we finally got there. We had to have a sort of Guide to help us around. He took us to this wizarding bank called Gringotts. It was full of GOBLINS! GOBLINS! That's just mental! I met this WONDERFUL shopkeeper, Ollivander, who sold me my WAND. A WAND! Can you believe that? It was remarkable! Apparently, I can't choose my own wand, because it would choose ME! I've never really been chosen for anything! Well, besides belittlement from my sister.

My wand was made of vinewood with a unicorn tail hair core. Uh, hello? UNICORNS EXIST? What?! And it's unyielding and 12 ¼ inches long! It's AMAZING! Then, I had to go get fitted for school robes. Robes? I mean, come on. It's the 1970s. But, fine, I shall deal with robes, I guess. I got to go to this WONDERFUL bookstore! I mean, yes, I had to pay for school books, but there were so many fascinating tomes there! I couldn't believe it! I had to get a cauldron and a bunch of other things from an apothecary.

The last thing on my list of supplies was a pet! I got to have a pet! I've always wanted a pet! My sister is dreadfully allergic to cats and dogs and things of that nature. Since it'd have to accompany me back at my home, I couldn't get a cat, much to my dismay. I've never really been partial to toads, so all that was left, was an owl. I was going to own an owl! That's incredible! I bought a Screech owl, and named her Avalon. I figured it was a greatly suited name for a witch's pet. That's when it hit me. I'm a witch.

We went home after that, and I sat around for the next couple weeks doing absolutely nothing of importance. I wanted to get on the train and be on my way to my new school, and new home for the next school year!

Then that day finally came, and here I am. Sitting aboard the Hogwarts Express and it makes its way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It's all just completely mental! I was about to lounge down on the seats, since no one was in here with me, and take a nap, when I heard a girl shouting.

"NO, I WON'T GO OUT WITH YOU, YOU FRIZZY HAIRED GIT!" the voice had shouted.

"Random," I had said aloud to myself, as I often did. I had a bad habit of talking to myself.

Shortly after, there were two girls walking down the hall and then my compartment door was opened.

"Can we sit in here with you?" One of the girls asked. She had black hair, and soft yet fierce features. She was accompanied by a girl with red head and remarkably green eyes.

"Of course you may."

The two of them sat opposite me and the first girl started consoling the redhead.

"What happened? If it's not too intrusive, that is" I inquired.

This time, the redhead spoke.

"Some abomination of a man decided to flirt with me. It was nauseating, really. He thought he was so suave, I bet. That Potter boy will be all sorts of trouble for me, I can see it now. Thinking he's so smooth with his hair flying away in all directions."

"Wow. He sounds terrible." I've never been good in these kinds of situations. What am I supposed to say to something like that?

"He is!" She replied. There was a silence that followed for what seemed like an hour. "I'm Lily Evans, by the way. This is my friend Alice Prewett. I'm muggle born, she's a Pure Blood. How about you?"

"I'm Amanda Joye, it's nice to make acquaintance with you two."

"Great," Alice said. "She speaks proper just like you do!"

"There's nothing wrong with proper speech, Al." Lily said. "Are you a pureblood? I don't think I've heard of the Joye family before."

"No, I'm muggle born, as well. My last name is silly, I know. My sister always told me that my attitude is too dark for such a cheery last name."

"No, the name suits you quite well, it seems," Lily told me.

"Well, thank you! I have a friend back home named Evans. Well, her name is Jessica, but I've always called her Evans. Maybe you two are distantly related?"

"That'd be interesting, but I highly doubt it. I may have the smallest family known to Britain. Judging by your accent, you're from somewhere in Scotland. Maybe somewhere near Glasgow?"

"Right on the dot, you are. Have you ever been? It's hardly worth it. There's golf courses everywhere, if you're into that kind of sport."

"I'm afraid I'm not, but Glasgow has always seemed like such a nice place."

"It's alright, I suppose. It's quite beautiful, though."

"I bet!"

"So, Alice, since you're the only one of us to know what to expect at Hogwarts, want to let me in on it? My dad refused to let me read about it! He wants me to leave things a mystery so that the professors actually have something to teach me." I gave a small chuckle.

"Actually," Lily said. "I read all about it! I think I may know more than Alice! It's a big, magnificent castle that no muggle can see-"

"Muggle? What on Earth is a muggle?"

"People who cannot do magic. The students are divided into 4 different houses, each represented by a different animal and different colours! There's Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Gryffindor's colours are scarlet and gold, and they're represented by a lion. Ravenclaw's colours are blue and bronze, and they're represented by an eagle."

"Why isn't it a raven?"

"I- … You know, I'm not entirely sure. Anyway, Hufflepuff's colours are yellow and black, and they're represented by a badger. Slytherin's colours are green and silver. They're represented by a serpent. Be careful with the staircase, as they're enchanted to move. Oh! The ceiling in the Great Hall is bewitched to look like the sky outside! I'm looking forward to that. When we arrive, we'll be taken on a boat ride to the castle. Then we'll be escorted into the castle and then we will be sorted into our houses!"

"Why are there 4 different houses?"

"They represent the 4 founders," Alice chimed in. "They all have traits to them that make them unique, but not all students who end up in a certain house will have all those traits, necessarily. Like, Gryffindors are stereotypically these wild and crazy kids who will put their lives in danger to show their bravery. Rarely the case, though. But their typical traits are bravery, and chivalry. Hufflepuff's is rather close to that, actually. Their traits are loyalty and tolerance. Ravenclaw's traits are intelligence and individuality. Slytherin's traits are ambition and traditionalism."

"Wow. What house do you guys think you'll be put in?"

Alice answered first, "Where I admire the traditionalism in some families, I will not be a Slytherin. There's no witch or wizard who went bad that wasn't in Slytherin. Though, that's not to say that all Slytherins are bad people. Some can be quite remarkable. I just refuse to go there. Beyond that, I don't really know. Hufflepuff would be nice."

Lily squinted in concentration. "I'd go so well in all of them, actually. I don't think I can choose!"

"Ravenclaw seems to be calling my name already. How are we sorted, exactly?"

"You go to the front of the Great Hall and they place an old tattered hat on your head, the Sorting Hat, and he prods are your mind and he will sort you," Lily informed me.

"Well, then I can't wait!"

We spent the rest of the train ride talking and getting to know each other. I told them about my family and my home, about my new pet owl, Avalon, and all my expectations of the years to come. It seemed like just an hour had gone by when the train finally stopped. We looked outside and night had been brought upon the sky. We exited the train, running into the frizzy-haired boy named Potter, who prompted Lily with another proposal of courtship. Which she declined, in a not so polite manner. We were greeted on the platform by a man that was taller than my father. Lily informed me that he's a half-giant.

"'Ello, there, ferst years! Rubeus Hagrid at your service! Now, if all you would follow me t' the boats we gots for yeh, we'll all be on our way."

Students filed in to the boats, no more than four to a boat. Then, something intriguing happened. The boats began to sail on their own, and followed its route to the castle. We rounded the corner, and stood before us was the most magnificent looking castle that I had ever seen. (Not that I have seen many castles in my time.) Seeing my new, temporary home for the first nearly brought tears to my eyes. I couldn't believe that my life had changed so drastically and so fast. Towers on towers spiked up to into the sky. The castle had its own feel of a magical ambiance to it.

The boats came to a halt outside, and we were led out of them. Hagrid directed our way up to the front doors of Hogwarts. My heart was pounding harder than it ever had before. The doors opened, and Hagrid sent us in to meet with a Professor. I stood at the front of the group with Lily and Alice. We began to walk up the stairs and we were met by a woman, dressed in a green robe with black accents. She wore a pointed black hat, though the tip was bent over, that bore a green feather at the brim. She spoke to us, explaining to us what will happen when we walk in the doors to the Great Hall.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. Now, in a few moments you will pass through these doors and join your classmates, but before you take your seats, you must be sorted into your houses. They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Now while you're here, your house will be like your family. Your triumphs will earn you points. Any rule breaking, and you will lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup. I am Professor McGonagall, Deupty Headmistress and Head of Gryffindor house. I will also be your Transfiguration teacher. I will be back to collect you all in just a moment."

With that, Professor Mcgonagall left through the doors.

"Oh my God, Lily! I think I'm going to die! I can't believe this! I'm so excited!" I was bouncing up and down in my robes. I was wearing ROBES.

Lily laughed at me. "Calm down, you haven't even been sorted yet!"

"Who cares? This is going to make my heart beat so fast it ends up stopping!"

I was smiling from ear to ear when I heard a boy's voice form behind us. "Cute friend, Evans. Not as cute as you, of course. So, how about that date you promised me?"

I turned around to see a boy with black, frizzy hair and glasses. This must be the Potter boy that Lily spoke of on the train. He was accompanied by two other boys, one with longer black hair that had a slight wave to it, and another smaller boy with light brown hair, similar to my own.

Lily scoffed at him. "I would never promise such a thing to you, Potter. I'd rather expelled than go out with you."

The other black-haired boy spoke next. "That could be arranged, Evans."

"Oh, shove it, Black!" exclaimed Alice from the other side of Lily.

The brunette boy look at me with a smile and sighed. He hold out his hand and said, "Hi, I'm Remus Lupin, the sane one of these goons."

I accepted his handshake and introduced myself. "Hello, Remus Lupin. I am Amanda Joye."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Amanda."

"Do feel free to call me Manda. Only on a rare occasion to people call me Amanda. It's informal, I know, but I've always preferred it. That goes for you two as well," I said turning to Lily and Alice.

"So, Evans, what should I wear on our date?" Potter asked.

"How about a lovely hex that I'd be more than happy to put on you."

Potter seemed like he had some witty reply coming to him, but their bickering was interrupted when the doors opened once more, and out came Professor McGonagall.

"We're ready for you," was all she said to us before she turned and walked back.

This time, however, we were close on her heels when she did. We walk between four long tables, presumably one for each house. All heads turned to watch us walk down, and I felt my face grow warm from all the attention. I turned my head to the ceiling only to see the bewitchment that it held. It looked just like the night sky outside. Lily was right after all, though I expected her to be. I was so fixated on the stars twinkling indoors that I didn't notice that we were at the front of the Hall, and I walked into the back of Lily.

"Sorry," I whispered to her.

"It's okay, I ran into Alice doing the same thing."

All attention turned to McGonagall now.

"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she said. "James Potter."

Potter broke between us and strolled up to the stool. The Sorting Hat had barely found its way through his mess of hair when it called out, "GRYFFINDOR!"

One of the tables next to us broke up in cheers, as did some of the students standing behind us.

McGonagall called out the next name, "Severus Snape."

A boy came up from the back of the crowd, and Lily pat him on the shoulder with a friendly smile as he went past us. He had a bit of a crooked nose, and sleek black hair that looked like it hadn't been washed in a good while.

"SLYTHERIN!" Shouted the Sorting Hat after coming in slight contact with Snape's head. Cheering came from one of the other tables.

"Sirius Black," said the Professor.

The black-haired boy that was with Potter walked past us. My eyes were following Snape over to the Slytherin table, and when Black was at the stool, there were a lot of anticipating looks coming from most of them.

All their eyes widened, and some mouths fell open when from behind me came a sorting that they didn't seem to anticipate.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

The Gryffindor table fell into an uproar that was much louder than that given for Potter. Black stepped down, and sat at the table next to James.

Lily's name was called next. Unlike the last three, the Sorting Hat took quite a while to place her.

It seemed like a good 10 minutes before the Sorting Hat finally shouted out, "GRYFFINDOR!"

More cheering came from that table, and this time Alice joined in, as did I.

Alice was sorted into Gryffindor, as was Remus Lupin. A young blonde boy was sorted into Hufflepuff, and a black-haired girl was sorted into Slytherin. I was so caught up in imagining how much it'd suck to not be placed with my friends, that I didn't hear my name being called out.

"Amanda Joye."

"Oh, sorry, Professor."

I walked up and sat on the stool, and the Sorting Hat now rested on my head.

I could hear him muttering to himself within my head, and then the moment came. He called out my House, and I was probably more saddened than happy by it.

"RAVENCLAW!" The Hat shouted.

It was taken off my head, and I walked down to my table, instantly greeted by people that seemed so genuinely sweet. I glanced over to the Gryffindor table and made eye contact with Lily.

"Sorry," I mouthed to her.

"Don't be," She replied, nonverbally.

After that, my focus went straight to the dinnerware. Goblets and dishes were laid out in front of me, all gold. Well, gold-plated, I assume. I was in a mental investigation about whether these were solid gold or not, that I missed the rest of the Sorting. I probably wouldn't have ended my search for an answer if a soft, old voice hadn't started speaking.

"Welcome!" the voice said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Also, I'd like to give a warning to all of you. This year, some of you may have noticed a new addition to our school. A large tree has been placed on the grounds here, and I must stress that none of you go near it. True to its name, it is a Whomping Willow, and may severely harm you. Thank you! Let the feast begin."

And with that, he sat back down.

"What was that about?" I asked, turning to the girl next to me.

"That's Professor Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster. He's quite strange like that, actually."

"Brilliant!" I said with a smile on my face.

My smile quickly turned into a face of awe and disbelief, because before my eyes, platters of food erupted from the table. My goblet had filled itself, and I quickly began to fill my dish with food.

— —

After I had eaten so much I nearly chummed it all back up, the Feast was over. As instructed, I was to follow the Ravenclaw prefect to my Common Room. We trekked up so many moving stairs, I still wasn't even sure where I had gone. Finally, we reached a door that bore a bronze knocker shaped like an eagle.

"Which came first, the phoenix, or the flame?" the knocker said.

"What is this?" I asked the boy next to me.

"To get into our common room," he said, "you need to answer a riddle. If you can't answer it, you have to wait for someone who can. Only those with enough intelligence can get in, really."

"Bloody hell."

"A circle has no beginning," said the Prefect.

The door swung open, and I was led into the Common Room. It was beautiful, to put it plainly. It was like a library for me to use as my own. I was told where my dorm would be, and I was sent up to it straight away.

I got dressed in my sleep clothes, laid down in my four-poster bed, and stared up at the ceiling.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, Amanda," I said to myself, hoping my dorm-mates didn't hear me. "Welcome home."


	2. Sabotage

_My_ Perspective

I came back to consciousness to the sound of people moving. I was used to my own room, so the sounds startled me wide awake and made my heart race. I sat up quick and looked around the room frantically. My dorm mates were getting ready.

"Are you alright?" One of them asked.

"Yeah, I didn't expect to be woken up by people. I've never shared a room."

"Oh, well, sorry for startling you."

"It's quite alright. What time is it?"

"It's almost time to get down to the Great Hall."

"Awesome."

I got up and gathered my clothes and went into the bathroom. Only about 10 minutes had passed before I came back out, almost ready to head down. I sat down on my bed and put on my socks and shoes. I grabbed my robe, stood up, put it on, and headed down to the Hall.

I descended so many flights of stairs on my way. Students were bustling about, anticipating what the first day at Hogwarts would have in store for us all. I felt my spirits lift like the rest of them, and I couldn't help but smile all the way to the Hall. After what seemed like half an hour, I finally got to the ground floor and headed straight into the Great Hall. I walked in to see Lily talking to Alice, with James staring fondly at her from a few people down. Lily paid him no mind, but it seemed that she knew he was staring.

"Hey, guys," I said as I walked over to the Gryffindor table. "Good morning!"

"Good morning!" Alice and Lily said in sync.

"Good morning, Remus," I said, turning to face him.

"Good morning, Amanda."

"I'm so excited! I can't wait to start my classes!" I was nearly yelling.

"Oh, no," a familiar voice whined. "Not another one. James, you said we'd only have to deal with Remus and Evans being all brainy and no fun!"

From context and the arrogant tone in his voice, I knew it could be none other than Sirius Black talking.

"You said I was no fun, James?" Remus asked, sounding more amused than hurt.

"Well, you know, you're worried about studying and classes haven't even started!"

"It's never too soon to start, James."

"Ahh! See!" Sirius whined.

"Sod off, Sirius." Remus said to him.

"Remus! Your language!"

I laughed at them, as did Alice. Lily just smiled a little and turned her face away from James.

"Remus," I started. "Will you join me at the library later? There's something I want to talk to you about."

Remus seemed taken aback by this. He practically stuttered when he replied, "Alright."

"Thanks. Right after classes would be lovely."

"I'll see you there, then."

I smiled, told them all I'd see them later, and headed over to the Ravenclaw table where I sat and ate my breakfast. Just when I took a bite, our Head of House, Filius Flitwick, walked over and handed me my class schedule. I gave him a smile, since it's completely rude to talk with your mouth full. He smiled in return and handed out schedules to the rest of the House.

According to my schedule, my first class would be Charms, taught by my own Head of House. Sounded rather exciting. I glanced up at Lily, who had apparently been staring at me, waiting for me to look at her.

"Transfiguration," she mouthed to me.

"Charms," I replied in the same manner accompanied with a disappointed face.

Lily gave me a smile and nodded.

—

After a long day that seemed to flash by, my first day of classes was complete. I never would have imagined it'd have been so amazing!

Once I left the Transfiguration classroom, I headed straight to the library to meet Remus. He must have been closer because he was already there when I arrived.

"Hello, Mr. Lupin," I said, teasingly.

"Hello, Miss Joye," He replied with a smile.

"Ouch. I need to remember not to do that with people," I laughed.

We sat at a nearby table on opposite sides.

"I trust that you weren't followed by the goons," I said.

"That would be correct. As far as I know, at least."

"Good, I have something important I want to talk to you about."

Once again, he got nervous looking. He seemed to get clammy, and stutter a small bit before beginning to speak.

"Yeah, I know. Can we just get this over with?"

I was taken aback by him. It wasn't really a statement I expected to come from Lupin.

"Of course, Remus. After this morning, there's something that I saw in your eyes that brought this idea to mind. You got this twinkle of sorts when you told Sirius to sod off. It gave me a great idea, that you should prank the both of them."

It seemed that he was taken over with relief and he relaxed.

"You had me worried for a moment. So, a prank, huh?" He asked with a smirk.

"Absolutely. I used to get in a lot of trouble at my old school— you know, muggle school— for pulling pranks on students and teachers and such. Can't really help it, it's just a part of me."

"Ah, Amanda, I'll make a Marauder of you yet."

"What?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it," he let out a small laugh. "What kind of prank do you have in mind."

"Oh, well, I'm not sure. Exploding cauldron? Not like an actual huge explosion or anything, that'd be terribly dangerous and possibly lethal." I sat thinking for a moment. "What if you make their breakfast explode in their faces?"

"I like it, but it seems sort of-" He, too, stopped to think. "sort of below the bar. See, they think they're going to be the greatest pranksters Hogwarts has ever seen. If we're going to pull the first prank, I think it should be a bit more grand than that, don't you?"

"Ah, I see what you mean. Well, have you any thoughts, then?"

"We could use their own prank against them. They were up for half the night planning their first prank. I could sabotage, then act completely innocent. Heck, I could even let the prank backfire on me to make it more believable."

"Brilliant! What's the prank?"

"They want to put dungbombs under all the benches during breakfast tomorrow. It'd be a good time, because I'll be leaving for home tomorrow night."

"Why would you be leaving already? How long will you be gone?"

"My mother is rather ill. I'm set to go home once a month to visit her for a few days."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's alright. She just needs the company, you know? So, is this a go for tomorrow, then?"

"Absolutely! I knew there was a wild side to you, Remus Lupin," I said with a smile.

"You have no idea, Amanda," he said, smiling back to me.

With that said and done, we got up, I gave him a hug, and we left to go the Great Hall for dinner.

All through the meal, I kept glancing up and smiling at the unsuspecting Gryffindor pranksters. I noticed Lily was looking at me, confused and intrigued at what I was smiling about. I waved it off and mouthed to her that I'd tell her and Alice later. She nodded and we finished our meals.

I pulled a piece of parchment out of my bag, and a book I borrowed from the library after I had finished plotting with Remus. I wrote down what I had spoken to him about, folded it up, and slipped it in the book. I got up and walked over to the Gryffindor table and held the book out to Lily.

"Here's the book you asked for Lily," I said.

She gave me a quizzical look, but then smiled. "Thank you, Amanda. I'll get this back to you as soon as possible."

"No rush."

I smiled and walked out of the Hall and up the stairs to get some sleep. I was going to need to wake up early to make sure that I was there in time to see it all go down. It seemed rather promising.

—

Based on how many students were in the staircase at the time, I thought I was going to be the first person in the Hall. I walked through the archway, and I bumped into someone roughly, making me shut my eyes and rub my arm.

"Bloody watch where you're going, you prat!" I yelled with my eyes shut. I have a bit of an anger problem.

"The language, Miss Joye, if you please." I recognized that teasing voice. It was Remus.

I opened my eyes to see Remus standing with Black and Potter. I had apparently ran into Black, since he was the one rubbing at his chest where I ran into him.

"Don't call me that, Remus. It's very unbecoming."

"What are you doing down here so early?" Sirius asked me.

"I'm super hungry."

"Sure."

"Off we go, then?" Remus cut in.

"Yeah, better get out of here before people start noticing," James said.

"I'm standing right in front of you!" I said, raising my voice a little bit.

"Yeah, but I don't think you'll be giving away our secrets, now will you?"

"Secrets? What are you hiding, Potter?"

"Nothing! Get off my back, woman!"

"Whoa, there, Mr. Bates. Calm down."

"Who in Godric's name is Mr. Bates?"

"He's from a muggle movie. Sorry. I have a habit of referencing movies and things like that."

"Guys, we need to get going."

"Go on ahead, guys. I won't tell anyone."

"Thanks, Amanda."

As they started walking away, Remus glanced at me and winked. I smiled and headed into the Hall and sat down.

It must have been about 15 minutes before students started to fill the benches. It only took about another 10 for the rest of the students to pile in, and it was time. I loaded my plate with breakfast, and watched for Remus' signal that it was happening. Lily was also watching, ready to get out of range of the dungbombs that were laying underneath the boys section of the bench. Lily glanced over to me and smiled, as though thanking me for the heads up. I nodded at her, and we both turned back to Remus, waiting. It finally happened, Remus gave a small nod, and Lily dodged out of range, then the dungbombs went off. James and Sirius were so confused, and Remus was one of the best actors I'd seen outside of movies. All three of them freaked out, Sirius even fell backwards off the bench. I bursted out with hysterical laughter, as did most of the Hall. I could have sworn I saw Dumbledore chuckling beneath that grand beard of his.

"What happened, Sirius?" James yelled.

"I don't know! What'd you do wrong?" Black replied.

We all laughed our hearts out, and I even started tearing up a little. My abdomen muscles were hurting from laughing so hard after a while. The boys were led out of the Hall by Professor McGonagall and eventually the laughter died down. I looked over to Alice and Lily who were laughing and still smiling. Breakfast finished down, and we all headed to our classrooms.

I didn't see Remus the rest of the day, and I bumped into Potter and Black a couple times. Finally, after classes, sat down with Lily and Alice in the library after our classes. We talked for a good long while before heading down to dinner and then going to bed.

—

The weekend came, and I spent nearly the entire time with Lily and Alice. We spent time outside, in the library, and spying on James and Sirius. It was a wonderful weekend. I wish I could have talked with Remus as well to celebrate in the success of sabotage.

As quick as it came, the weekend was over. Remus had returned Sunday night, but he looked like someone took a knife to him. I'm sure he was thankful for the robes we wore so that they hid the cuts well enough. He seemed like he was in pain, though. I figured if he wanted to tell me what happened, he'd have already told me. I didn't question him, directly at least, and I let it go. (As far as he knew.)

I loved being here, and I loved my friends. I'd go as far to say that I even love Sirius Black and James Potter. Maybe not a lot, but enough. They felt like my family, and I'd do anything for them. Though, something in the back of my mind told me that I wasn't worth it, and they put up with me to be polite. I guess that's the problem with nearly non-existent self esteem. Even though I know it's not true, it still hurts to think about.

I went to sleep that night and waited for what this new week had to offer me when I woke up.


	3. The seed of Mischief is Planted

The next few days seemed to go by in such a blur. Remus and I conspired to have meetings to have pranks backfire. I spent time with Lily and Alice in the library, we lounged around by the Black Lake, and we even studied the Whomping Willow from a safe distance.

"Be careful," a voice from behind us said. It was all too clear who it was. We all turned to face Remus who looked like he was slashed at by an animal.

"What happened, Remus?" Alice asked him.

Remus seemed to collect himself before replying. "Well, upon my return, the guys were messing around out here. Once I joined in with them, I accidentally got too close to the tree."

"That TREE did this to you?" Lily exclaimed in shock.

"Yeah, so don't get too close. Probably best to just not examine it. You never know, looking at it wrong might set it off and you'll end up looking like me."

"Oh my gosh, Remus! Why would Dumbledore even put that on the grounds here?"

"Probably to keep beasts away, I suppose." He seemed to bite back.

"No animal deserves to be beaten by a tree," I said.

"There's some horrible things out there, Amanda. Dark wizards, bad tempered dragons, werewolves, killer snakes, hell even some people."

I gave him a bewildered look. "I suppose you're right."

"Dumbledore is probably just trying to protect us, I suppose," Lily added.

We all turned and eyed the tree. Its branches shook as though it were shrugging us off. Our fixation was suddenly interrupted by Remus.

"Well, best be getting back to the guys. Got to make sure they don't cause too much trouble."

"I'm sure you're just as bad as they are, Mr. Lupin."

"I think you have a troublemaking side to you, as well, Ms. Evans."

He nodded to us, turned, and walked away. We stood there for a moment, thinking of what we could do.

"Guys, I'll be right back," I said to the girls, and then I took off running after Remus.

"What'd I do?" He asked.

"Nothing? What do you mean what did you do?"

"You came running after me. You've yet to do that."

"Oh, hush. I wanted to talk with Sirius and James. And you, of course."

He looked at me quizzically for a moment before replying. "Why?"

"Dammit, Remus, stop asking questions and let's go."

We walked over to James and Sirius, who were (predictably) sitting in the stands at the Quidditch pitch. I was, of course, walking more determined than Remus.

"Hey, Rem- uh. Hi, Amanda. What brings you here?" James inquired.

"Good grief. Never just happy to see me?"

"Well, we are," Sirius started. "but, you're in league with Evans. So, what jinx threat has she sent through messenger?"

It was my turn to give a quizzical look.

"You lot need your brains examined, I swear. However, I did come over here because of Lily."

"I knew it! James, run!" Sirius yelled.

"Oh, sod off, Sirius. I came over here to help James win the hand of Lily."

James' eyes seemed to light up at the thought. Then, they suddenly became skeptical towards me.

"I understand that you're her friend and everything, Amanda, but, I don't think we can trust you on this. I mean, you've yet to prove yourself to us."

"James," Remus cut in. "She has proven herself to me. Amanda, tell them what you had me do."

"I convinced Remus to sabotage your prank so that it would backfire on you. To keep up the pretense that he had nothing to do with it, Remus even let himself fall victim. A trait that is very remarkable, might I add."

"IT WAS YOU?!" Sirius yelled. "YOU sabotaged our prank?"

"Yes, I did." Remus said, unfazed by the shouting.

"Dammit, Lupin!"

"Hey!" I shouted. "Are we ignoring that it was my idea?"

"Oh, you're not off the hook. But, if you don't mind, we're dealing with those closest to us first. You'll get your turn."

Before he could say another word to anyone, I jinxed him. It wasn't too bad of a jinx, though. Lily hadn't taught me the amazingly wicked ones quite yet. I turned his hair pink. An uproar of laughter came from the small groups of people around and even more so from Remus and James.

"What?" Sirius asked. "What'd she do to me?"

"Nothing, Sirius," James said. "You look dashing as always. In fact, you look tickled pink."

With that, he fell over laughing, as did Remus. Between my laughing, I opened my eyes to see Sirius pulling his hair forward to try and see it.

"MY HAIR IS PINK! AMANDA! CHANGE IT BACK RIGHT NOW!"

"Nah, I don't really fancy it."

"You don't fanc- JAMES! FIX ME!"

"Sorry, mate. You know I'm no good with countering jinxes. I can never undo the ones Lily sets on me."

"Remus," Sirius implored. "Remus, my darling friend. Please fix me. I can't do anything looking like this."

"Sirius," Remus replied. "You're 11, I don't think there's much that you need to look perfect for."

"I DON'T WANT TO BE REMEMBERED AS THE KID WITH PINK HAIR, DAMMIT!"

"Fine," I said. "Hold still."

I pulled my wand back out and countered my jinx.

"Good as new, sadly," I said.

"Sod off, Amanda," Sirius said, sharply.

"Tone, Sirius. And that language of yours." I clicked my tongue at him in fake disappointment.

"Watch your back, Amanda. I will be known as one of the greatest pranksters Hogwarts has ever known. I will not hesitate to make you the victim of a prank gone right."

"I'm shaking. Look at me, Sirius, I'm scared shitless."

"James, make her go away."

"Don't bother, James," I said. "I'm leaving, anyway. Got to get back to Lily. I just thought you guys might want ideas for pranks and help in getting Lily's heart. Have a good day, gentlemen."

I got up and patted Sirius on the head and turned and began walking away. I could hear murmurs from behind me.

"Get her back," James said.

"Don't you dare!" Sirius shouted.

"She knows how I can get Evans! I NEED THIS INFORMATION, SIRIUS! SWALLOW YOUR PRIDE!"

"Don't bring her back over here, James! Remus! Where the bloody hell are you going?!"

Suddenly I felt an arm on my shoulder.

"Hey," Remus said. "Can you come back and help us?"

"Depends. Will Sirius be mad?"

"Probably."

"Then, sure. It'd be my utmost pleasure."

We walked back over to Sirius and James. Sirius was faced away with his arms crossed. James was sitting, waiting eagerly.

"So," Remus started. "You have plans for some pranks-"

"Dammit, Lupin! There are more pressing matters at hand! Amanda, dearest Amanda, tell me how to win the heart of Evans."

"Well, James, it'd probably be a good idea to not call her Evans to her face. I mean, she has a first name."

"She gets mad when I call her Lily!"

"I know, but she will grow used to it. Once she is used to you calling her by her first name, then we move on to Stage 2: Pet Names."

"Pet names?" Sirius turned around with a disgusted look on his face. "Jamesie, please tell me you're not buying into this."

"Shush, Sirius. I will make Evans my wife, so help me Godric."

"Geez." Sirius sighed and leaned onto Remus.

"Rem, why do we put up with him?"

"Because he's in our dorm, you clotpole."

"CLOTPOLE?!" Sirius shouted.

"SIRIUS!" I yelled. "Worry about it later. Anyway, James, think of a nickname for her that could make her blush."

"Uhh.." James' face turned to that of someone in deep thought. He seemed to struggle with this task. "What about Red?"

"Because of her hair? Good grief. No! Something like 'Strawberry' or something as disgustingly sappy."

"Disgusting?! Don't you talk about my strawberry like that!"

"Oh, Godric. What have I started?"

James stood up in a triumphant pose.

"I shall win the hand of my strawberry if it's the last thing I do!"

People all around were looking at us funny.

I just said to them, "He likes his fruit. I've learned not to question it. Don't judge him."

"Thank you, Amanda."

"I didn't tell you about Stage 3!"

"For another time!" He shouted as he ran off.

"He's off to go after Evans, isn't he?" Sirius asked.

"Probably," said Remus.

"Well, I guess my work is done," I said as I stood up.

Sirius grabbed me and pulled me back down.

"Oh, no you don't. You have to give us ideas for pranks. You promised. You SWORE."

" I did not promise or swear! However, I will help you. What kind of prank are you looking for? Small group or school-wide?"

"Amanda," James started. "how can we become the greatest pranksters Hogwarts has ever seen if it's only directed towards a small group?"

"Point taken. Would you prefer one that induces vomiting? One that is terrifying, which you may want to save for Halloween?"

"You have these prepared already?!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Well, yeah. I can start writing them down in a book if you want. Then you guys can just have them for the picking. Although, I think it best to only let Remus here carry it."

James and Sirius looked at each other, and then back at me with a look of mock-shock.

"And what's wrong with us?" James asked.

"I'll have you know I'm a part of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black!"

"I just- I don't-" I turned to Remus. "How am I supposed to reply to that?"

"Normally, we make fun of him or shrug it off."

"You know, Sirius," James said. "for someone who seems to despise his family so much, you seem to bring up that you're part of them a lot."

"It's called sarcasm, you frizzy haired git!"

"Temper, Sirius," Remus said.

They exchanged looks. I couldn't quite tell what the looks meant, and it seemed to hold for a split bit too long. My eyes went from Sirius to Remus, back and forth, waiting for when their stare would break.

"Guys," James cut in, startling them and breaking their eye fixation.

"What do you want, Potter?" Sirius asked.

"Watch the tone, Black. I'll throw you in the lake."

"Too close to Lily," Remus said.

"Evans is at the Lake?"

"Yeah, that's where I found Amanda."

"Amanda, you were with Evans- I mean, Lily, at the Lake and didn't tell me?"

"Baby steps, James. Baby steps. We've only just begun on your transformation."

"I'm not a bloody butterfly, Joye!"

"Oh, Merlin, please don't call me that. Of all things I am, joyful isn't one of them. Usually, at least."

They all looked at me with such peculiar stares. Almost like they didn't understand what I was saying.

Then, James shook off the moment and said, "So, you're saying I shouldn't go see my red-haired beauty by the Lake? It's black emptiness only making her hair and eyes glow even more radiantly?"

Remus and Sirius exchanged confused looks again and then turned their peculiar looks to James. He must of felt the pressure.

"What?!" he exclaimed. "You two are just jealous that you've never felt this much love before."

"Jamesie, buddy," Sirius started. "we're 11 years old, mate. There's time for you to waste before throwing the rest away on Evans."

"I'd throw my entire life away to be with Evans."

I gave him a look.

"Uh, sorry. To be with Lily."

"James, you don't have to change everything, for the love of Godric," I said.

"I'd give up my pranking to be with that girl," James said, a bit more quietly, as though to himself.

The rest of us gasped and looked at him horrified, but in a mocking way.

"Okay," James continued. "Maybe not that far. But, I'd give up a hell of a lot."

"You've got a cruel road ahead of you, mate," said Sirius.

"Shove off, Black."

"He's right," I said. "Evans won't be too excited about a sudden change in such prominent behavior as yours."

Sirius and James looked at me, and then at Remus.

"Translation?" Sirius asked him.

"You can't change yourself abruptly. Lily will think something is up. One thing at a time. For starters, just stick with calling her Lily. Be careful not to slip up and call her-"

He stopped and looked at me.

"What?" I asked.

"You called her Evans."

"Ugh. Dammit, Potter. Look what you did to me."

"Don't blame me!"

"Well I have to get back to the girls. So, do you guys want me to start writing the pranks down? A scroll of parchment may be too conspicuous, I can probably find a journal to write in."

"Yes!" Sirius yelled, rather loudly. Now everyone was looking over at us.

"That would be great, Amanda. Thank you," Remus said.

"Tell Lily she will be in my heart forever!" James said as I started walking away.

"Not happening, Potter!" I yelled back.

I walked through groups of people and made my way back to Alice and Lily. I made lists in my mind of what kind of pranks I could prepare for the boys.


End file.
